It is the thought life that defiles you Mark 7:20 (NLT) He was daring, handsome, and well-liked by those who knew him. His profession provoked awe and wonder in those who met him. Yet, Warren had a secret that he shared with no one. He worried that people would not like him unless he was perfect and never made a mistake. Not only would nobody have guessed this secret, but they would not have believed it existed. When he walked into the office of Dr. Sandbek for a consultation, he talked about living a life of worry for as long as he could remember. He was usually quiet in crowds unless other people initiated conversation with him. His friends thought he was just a tranquil and composed person. What they did not see was the inner turmoil eating up his insides. Without having names for his emotions, he experienced bouts of anxiety and depression. There seemed to be a discrepancy between his constant worry and his lifetime achievements. Warren addressed this apparent incongruity by saying that when he was working in his high-powered job he never worried because it was just business. His worry always centered around people, not things or activities. He savored the time spent with the professionally competent people who worked for him. However, when they were not working, Warren would slip back into worrying about what they thought about him. The therapy issues were quite clear to Warren. He finally had enough and wanted to get rid of the worry. His worry had been with him for so long that he did not think it was likely that he could stop. He learned in the therapy this was not true but he was still reluctant to accept the possibility of a worry-free life. Soon after his initial session he began to write. Within a week, he awareness became flooded with the extent of the problem. Although he could easily talk about how much he worried, he had no idea of how much he really worried. After several weeks the notebook became filled with his lifetime worries. He learned how to give these worries to the Enemy and carve out space in his life for healthy thoughts and emotions. A few therapy sessions later, he began to laugh when he read his writing aloud to Dr. Sandbek. The absurdity of the Enemys thought arrows became more evident as time passed. Eventually, he found that his inner turmoil was subsiding and daily life became less of a struggle. Warren soon found that could initiate contact with all the people in his life he had avoided because he was afraid of what the Enemy kept telling him. His quest to reconnect with all his past friends began in earnest. Now that he was retired, he could spend his time as he liked. The decision to fill the relational void in his life became his most important goal. Warren is today living life fully by being with the people he cares about and learning to find other people who are interested in sharing his life. You, too, can rid your life of the Enemy. When you do this, you can use the time and space more meaningfully that was formerly occupied by the Enemy. http://www.renewingyourmind.us |
